Compassion, The Melting Point

By David Pam McQuel

As the millennium strolled in, my young wife and I were heading for forlough. The last year of the 20th century was quite stressful on the mission field. Although we saw lives changing, the fellowship of disciples growing we struggled with personal and family challenges.

We were still early in our married life, our closeness and intimacy was our immunity against the devils whiles.

Arriving home was a great moment of joy. We were seeing family,  friends and colleagues we haven't seen for years. The ministry gave us a 2-weeks break to visit our folks.

What we thought would be a short furlough ended up a 3-long-years hold. I want to share a story that I encountered trying to bring a Jehovah Witness to the light.

While I pastored in Keffi, a growing sub metro less than 20 kilometres from Abuja,  the political capital of Nigeria. Coming back from the mission field this church was in crisis. The ministry needed matured pastor to stabilize the situation.

About a year later, a lady who happened to reside in the neighbourhood of the church came to church on her own. I found out she was a young widow, who was about getting married to a Jehovah's Witness.

This sister who though young in the faith really wanted the man to become a believer, that she planned a meeting for he and I. We did meet. And he shared his story.

He grew up a Catholic and made the necessary effort to follow the Catholic rituals. While in university, he participated in religious activities and got to serve.

A few years before we met, on transit to the city of Kaduna, their commercial vehicle had an accident. He was unconscious and taken to the hospital.

At the hospital they found no identity card and that made it difficult to get into contact with his family or friends. He laid in hospital for a few days unconscious. And it always is in government medical services in Nigeria, it is cash and carry,  meaning pay before service.

There was a young female nurse who became interested. She took it upon herself to hep the man. She was a. Jehovah's Witness. She did not only raise money for his bills, she went to her Kingdom Hall fellowship and brought him up as a challenge.

The community organized visits in turns, they prepared meals, and provided toiletteries and other needs. For the period of about 2 months he was in the hospital he had the best family he had only imagined.

The care, the kind words, the expressions of compassion and warm affection left him speechless. More over, these people were total strangers. He wondered what the nededed in return.

Not long after he was discharged from the hospital he was told they are Jehovah's Witnesses. He was shocked. He knows about the movement. They have visited him in his home a million times.

They are so naggingly persistent and annoying. He has heard so many people's experiences with them. The Jehovah's Witnesses can be so arrogant and proud. Especially claiming to be the only true Christians. He remembered his personal experiences with them, how he loathed them.

Now he was in the midst of them and this time closer on a whole new level. Not only was he finding one aspect of them he never knew but he was now comparing them with his proud Catholic Church and wondering if the would step up to the plate like these Witnesses had done.

He grew up a Catholic. He has bragged about the Catholic Church with her luxurious history, her heavy infrastructure, her educational heritage, her renown and about her been the oldest church.

But could he brag of such unequalled care and selfless affection? He wasn't sure.

Meanwhile among the same hospital staff were Evangelicals, Charismatics and Pentecostals. But the bulk of them where Evangelicals who would not, as in the story of The Compassionate Samaritan, cross the road to meet the mans needs.

They busy asking questions, irrelevant questions. Now the man's life was in danger but they had other petty needs to take care of. They can't afford, not even a fraction of their savings to save his life.

Almost everybody was wondering, who is he? Where is he coming from? Why doesn't he have an ID? Who know what he has done to deserve this? Can he pay me back? What if he doesn't survive? What will I gain? I don't waste my money on perfect strangers. If only we located his people, let them come and take care of THEIR brother, and so on and so forth!

A Jehovah's Witness saw it differently, she saw an opportunity to help someone who will become another Witness. She went to her Witness family, they all responded positively and such an outpour of affection cannot go unappreciated.

And after been discharged, one of the Witnesses took him home and took care of him till he was fully recovered to go back. He later told them he was a journalist. It didn't take a second of witnessing to tell him that these people cared about him.

Equally, there was no need to invite him to the Kingdom Hall of the Jehovah's Witnesses. He was broken and ready before they could ask. All his prejudice and bigotry against them had melted like wax before the fire. He was already a convert.

By the time he was leaving, he ask them how much he was refunding and for an account number where he can pay in. He was shocked when they told him with a smile that there was nothing to refund. It was just love, and free as Jehovah has taught them.

At this point, as he narrated, a few things were registered in my mind, I have seen just a few number of this outpour of love to a stranger among charismatics in my 30 years as a Christian. I also knew it will take more that sweeth theological exegeses to convince him the Jehovah's Witnesses are wrong and we Evangelicals and Charismatics are right.

Then he asked me, "pastor, would i reject such outpour of selfless love from these people? " I wish he didn't ask me. He has already given me enough to chew.

Friends, witnessing for Jesus without a truly compassionate heart is a futile job. It is just noise. Jesus had compassion as His biggest tool.

Matthew 9:35 "Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd."

A compassionate heart does more touch than theologically eloquent lips. We are sent to win the world. To be the salt and the light means to show such extraordinary compassion. It will make your witnessing effective and fruitful. You are not buying souls, you are just showing that you care.

Compassion will break the hardest heart.

God bless you.